Daphne's eyes fluttered open, and she found herself in her bed in the Slytherin dorm. Letting out a breath she sat up and rubbed her face. "It worked… sweet Merlin it worked…"
Getting out of bed Daphne walked into the communal bathroom for the dorm and looked herself over. She could tell it was fifth year or later. She'd had a growth spurt between fourth and fifth year that caused her to grow taller and made her breasts and ass fill out. She'd gone from having small perky tits to a chest comparable to Susan Bones or Fleur Delacour.
"I really like your tits," A voice said behind her.
Daphne swore loudly causing her best friend to rush into the room. "Daph! Are you ok?"
Daphne nodded, getting her breathing under control. "Yes, I'm fine. Thank you, Tracey. I saw a spider."
"Oh, gross. Better not tell Parkinson, she'll freak."
"Yes… quite," Daphne agreed as Tracey left. Once she was gone, Daphne locked the door and returned to the mirror. "Granger, what the fuck are you doing here?"
"I don't know. The last thing I remember is taking the pill of belladonna. After that everything went black until you woke up. I can only assume my soul was caught up in the magic of the ritual and came back with you." Hermione explained. She was standing behind Daphne in the reflection of the mirror dressed in the attire she'd arrived at the penthouse in.
"Clearly," Daphne replied flatly. "So… are you stuck in my head now?"
"I have no idea. Is it a problem?"
"Yes, Granger. I'd prefer not to have you stuck in my head for the rest of my life. Look, whatever, we'll figure it out later. I need breakfast."
After completing her morning routine, Daphne descended into the Slytherin common room. As she scanned the area for allies or enemies, she could hear Hermione musing about the decor. Daphne ignored her and walked out of the Slytherin dorm and ascended into the entrance hall.
"I guess we know what year we landed in," Hermione commented as Daphne passed the educational decrees lining the path to the great hall. Daphne gave a subtle nod as they entered the hall and sat down.
As Daphne loaded her plate with food, she heard Hermione gasp. "Harry."
Daphne's head jerked up and she almost dropped her plate as Harry, Hermione, and Weasley entered the hall. The younger Harry looked almost as handsome as he did as an adult. Despite being so young he looked world weary. "Everyone piled their expectations on him and expected him to suck it up and make miracles happen. He gave up so much and they kept expecting more. I hate them."
Daphne nodded and watched Harry and his friends sit down to have breakfast. Despite everything he had to deal with, Harry looked happy. At least he did when he glanced at Hermione. Even from the other side of the hall, Daphne could see the admiration in his eyes for her. There was clear affection for Hermione that went beyond friendship.
"I never knew, I never saw him look at me that way…"
'Because he hid it whenever you were looking. Maybe he knew Weasley had feelings for you already.'
Daphne heard Hermione huff angrily. "Of course, Harry would put Ron's feelings before his. Ron knew and played on it. He played Harry and I like fiddles."
Daphne continued watching and spotted Ron looking up from his food and glancing at Harry. Harry immediately averted his eyes from Hermione and returned them to his plate.
"Can you hex his balls off for me?"
Daphne chuckled. 'Sorry Granger. We're supposed to be keeping a low profile, remember?'
"Not for too long. Umbridge is torturing Harry, we can't let that continue…"
'What are you talking about?'
"Here, look for yourself," Hermione said, sharing some memories with Daphne.
'The bitch needs to die,' Daphne thought in response.
"I won't argue, got a plan in mind?"
'Well, there is a Basilisk in the basement… although we have no way to get to it,' Daphne opined.
"Maybe we do…"
After classes Daphne walked up to the seventh floor and summoned a private room as Hermione instructed. Once inside she sat down. "Dobby."
The excitable house elf appeared seconds later. He glanced around the room before catching sight of Daphne. His eyes widened as they wandered past Daphne to somewhere over her shoulder. "Miss Greengrass and Miss Grangy?"
Daphne almost instinctively spun around in her seat to look behind her only to find the space empty. Turning around she eyed the little house elf suspiciously. "You can see her?"
Dobby nodded enthusiastically. "Oh yes, Dobby can see Miss Grangy… Miss Grangy looks sad…"
"Uh… yes, Dobby, please don't tell anyone. We need to keep Miss Granger a secret. Can you do that, Dobby?"
Dobby considered Daphne's request. "Will this help great master Harry Potter?"
"Yes," Daphne replied.
"Then Dobby will keep it secret."
"I need your help, Dobby. A bad woman is hurting Harry. I need to stop her. Will you help me?"
"Dobby will help you stop bad Professor Pink."
Daphne almost laughed at Dobby's name for Umbridge. She didn't even question how Dobby knew it was Umbridge she was talking about. It seemed the only person on earth who didn't realise she was evil, was Fudge. "I plan to kill her; do you still want to help me?"
"Dobby… Dobby shouldn't, but Dobby wants to protect great master Harry Potter. Dobby will help so great master Harry Potter doesn't have to."
Daphne nodded. "Thank you. Now," Daphne said. "First, I need dragonhide gloves and a glass container."
"Yes, Miss Greengrass," Dobby replied before disappearing. Seconds later he reappeared with the requested items. Daphne nodded and stood up, offering Dobby her hand. "Take me to see the the Basilisk."
"Big scary snake is rotting. It smells very bad," Dobby warned.
Daphne cast a bubble head charm around herself. "Ready."
Seconds later Daphne found herself in a darkened cavernous room. Daphne raised her lit wand and turned around.
"FUCK!!!"
Daphne fell flat on her ass as she scrambled to back away from the giant Basilisk head she'd appeared in front of. She slowly regained her composure as she rose to her feet. Steadying her breath Daphne approached the beast and ran her hand along the scales. "How did Harry survive this?"
"He almost didn't. He was impaled in the arm by one of its fangs. If Fawkes, Dumbledore's Phoenix, hadn't been there he and Ginny Weasley would have died."
Daphne walked around the Basilisk and paused at a large ink stain on the floor. "So, is this where Harry destroyed his first horcrux?"
"Yes."
"And Dumbledore didn't tell him what it was?"
"Not for another three years. Harry was 'too young' at the time. He was too young to be fighting Voldemort, Basilisks, Voldemort, Dementors, Voldemort, Dragons, and did I mention Voldemort. But he did it. No one fought for Harry, no one protected him."
"That's why we're here," Daphne said as she took the items Dobby had procured and placed them on the ground. Donning the dragon hide gloves she picked up the discarded fang with Harry's dried blood on it and placed it in a glass container.
"Return us to the room, please," Daphne asked.
Seconds later they were back in the room of requirement and Daphne conjured a chair to sit in. "We have what we need for the horcruxes, that leaves how we get rid of Umbridge."
"Cyanide, it's a muggles poison that kills in minutes."
"Dobby, I need to ask you to do something unpleasant. I need you to find some…" Daphne glanced away to consult with Hermione. "Powdered cyanide and spike Umbridge's tea when she's alone and no one can help her. Can you do that?"
"Dobby will do it," Dobby said nervously.
"Are you sure? I can find another way…"
Dobby shook his head vigorously. "No. Dobby will do it. Dobby will protect great master Harry Potter."
"Ok."
Daphne was sitting eating breakfast the next day when the doors to the great hall burst open and several senior ministry people entered. "I hate Fudge."
'Is there anyone you don't hate?' Daphne asked in her mind.
"You? And Harry. Dobby too."
Daphne let a small smile cross her lips. 'Thank you.'
"Aurors, arrest him?!" Fudge ordered, his face was incandescent with rage.
"Minister, this is highly inappropriate," Dumbledore said firmly, placing himself between Harry and the man he was addressing. "There is no evidence Mister Potter was involved in this unfortunate incident."
"Sir, what's going on?" Harry asked.
Dumbledore gave a heavy sigh. "Madam Umbridge was found dead in her office early this morning. Poisoning is suspected."
Harry shook his head and frowned. "Minister, I may have disliked Professor Umbridge, but I didn't kill her. I'm willing to swear an oath to that effect."
"I don't think that will be necessary, Mister Potter. Do you, minister?" A tall red-headed woman asked.
"Who is that?" Hermione asked.
'Amelia Bones, the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement,' Daphne explained.
"She dies during the holidays between fifth and sixth year,' Hermione recalled as the name came back to her.
'Hopefully not this time. Do you think Harry will be ok?'
"They can't connect Harry to Umbridge's death. He'll be fine. He's used to being yelled at by morons."
"Madam Bones, you should see this," Tonks announced as she entered the hall. She showed something to the three adults. Fudge's face went pale while Dumbledore and Bones's faces turned thunderous.
"Mister Potter, did Madam Umbridge ever make you use a quill like this in class?" Dumbledore asked carefully.
Fudge made to protest but the looks on Dumbledore's and Bones's face caused him to think better of it. Harry stared at the quill with such contempt Daphne could see it from across the hall. "Not during class…"
Fudge's face brightened but his hope was immediately extinguished by Dumbledore's next question. "Did she use it during detention?"
"Yes," Harry replied quietly.
"Show us, please," Dumbledore asked gently.
Harry pulled up the sleeve of his robe and held out his hand for the four to see. "I must not tell lies; what did she think you were lying about?" Tonks asked abruptly. She ducked her head when she saw the look in Bones's eyes.
"While my Auror lacks tact. The question is still valid," Bones said.
"She said I needed to stop lying about Voldemort being back…"
"This again! Dumbledore, we discussed this. You-Know-Who has not returned. He. Is. Dead!" Fudge protested loudly.
"You can believe what you want, Minister. I really don't care," Harry replied, his tone showing the toll the constant abuse thrown at him by everyone had taken.
"What do you believe, Mister Potter?" Bones asked.
"Amelia? I have told you…" Fudge protested.
"Yes, I heard you, Cornelius. However, I was not allowed to be involved the night of the third task earlier this year. I wasn't even able to launch an investigation into Cedric Diggory's death. It was hurriedly swept under the rug, while the ministry maligned Mister Potter's good name for no reason. Now, I would like to hear an answer to my question."
"Does it matter?" Harry asked, the fact he was so distrustful of the ministry clearly weighed on Bones.
"It matters to me," Bones assured him.
Harry let out a breath. "I saw Voldemort in the flesh. He was alive and surrounded by his followers. I watched Cedric get murdered by Peter Pettigrew on Voldemort's orders. That's the truth."
"Lies!" Fudge hissed.
"Why would I lie about this minister? What's there to gain from it?" Harry demanded.
"You're the boy-who-lived! You want to help your precious mentor ascend to the top of the ministry and attain the position he's always been after! You concocted this plan to destabilise my government and tarnish the reputations of fine upstanding members of our community."
"Minister, there's nothing I want less than for the headmaster to become the Minister for Magic. I'd much rather he focused all his attention on what's happening here than in London. I said what I said because it's true. I was trying to help. All I get in return is scorn, so fine, Voldemort is dead, happy? Will that make you leave me alone? Or will you send someone else to burn words into my hand?"
Hermione who'd been sitting behind him the entire time, gripped his arm a little tighter. "Harry, don't antagonise him."
"I had nothing to do with that, Mister Potter. I would never have condoned the abuse of a child."
Harry glanced back at Hermione who gave him an encouraging nod. "Ok. I withdraw the accusation and apologise."
Fudge nodded. "Dumbledore, let's continue this in your office."
"Of course, minister," Dumbledore replied as they and the Aurors departed.
'Think the ministry will do anything about Voldemort this time?'
"I'd be shocked. But then weirder things have happened," Hermione commented.
'True.'
"So, what's next?"
'Horcruxes.'
"Are you sure this is the place?" Daphne asked as they stood at the end of the stacks in the room of requirement.
"This is the Room of Forgotten Things. This is where Ronald and I found the diadem before it was destroyed by Crabbe using Fiendfyre."
"There's an idea…"
"If you have a way to survive fiendfyre, I'm all ears."
"Sadly, I don't. Any recollection of where you found it last time?"
"Further in on a stack of books. Be careful though, this room is full of all kinds of junk. Who knows what someone left here."
"Noted."
Daphne slowly crept down the stacks towards the middle of the room. As Daphne approached the end of the row, she heard Hermione speak up. "Wait, stop."
"What's wrong?"
"I can feel it. It's nearby."
"Are you sure?"
"I can't explain it, maybe it's because I spent so much time around them. But I can feel it, we're close."
"Ok," Daphne replied as she kept walking.
"On your left," Hermione announced.
Daphne turned and stopped when she spotted the diadem on top of dusty books. "I take it, that's it?"
"Yep."
"Any traps I should be aware of?" Daphne asked, approaching the diadem warily with her wand out.
"No, Harry was able to handle it with no ill effects."
Daphne transfigured a piece of rubbish into a pole with a hook on the end to pick up the Diadem. "Dobby, can you return us to the chamber please?"
Seconds later Daphne and Dobby were back in the chamber. Daphne set the diadem on a small table and picked up the basilisk fang. "So, all I have to do is stab the centre jewel and it'll kill the horcrux?"
"Yes but be careful. The spirit will come bursting out. As soon as you split the jewel back away."
"Understood," Daphne said before taking a deep breath. "Here goes."
Raising the fang Daphne thrust it down with all her strength and shattered the jewel at the centre of the diadem. An explosion of magical energy knocked Daphne backwards. The energy wave sent the fang skidding across the floor away from her and towards the Basilisk. Daphne raised her arms to protect her ears as Voldemort screamed and dispersed.
Up above in the Gryffindor common room, Harry was getting up from his study desk when he stumbled, gripping his head. Hermione dropped her books and ran around the desk to wrap an arm around Harry helping him back to his seat. "Harry, are you ok?"
Harry gave his best friend a gentle smile. "Yeah, just a bit of a wobble. I'm fine."
Hermione blushed and looked away. Harry's smile always made her stomach do funny things. But she knew he didn't feel the same way she felt about him. Not after the past two years. If he'd been interested, he would have asked her to the ball and he wouldn't be chasing Cho around the castle like a lost puppy this year. It hurt, but she'd stopped crying herself to sleep over a year ago. She was moving on from dreams of being Harry's girlfriend, she had too. But she'd never stop being his best friend.
"Greengrass, Greengrass… GREEN!!!"
"I'm alive, Granger. Bloody Merlin, you could wake the dead."
"Are you ok?" Hermione asked.
"Sort of. I'm going to be sore for a while, I think. A better question is, did we, do it?" Daphne asked as she sat up and looked across the chamber at the ruined remains of the diadem.
"Seems that way."
Dobby appeared and offered his hand to Daphne. "Miss Greengrass should rest now. Dobby will clean up and put the pretty crown somewhere safe."
Daphne nodded. "Thank you, Dobby."
Once Daphne reached the great hall she almost collapsed onto the bench. This earned her some odd looks which she mostly ignored. The only one she paid any mind to was Tracey who she graced with a weak smile.
"You should see Madam Pomfrey for some pain relief potion," Hermione advised.
'And what explanation do I give for being in so much pain?'
"Period pain? We are close to it being that time of the month," Hermione suggested.
'You have a point,' Daphne agreed.
After dinner Daphne went to Madam Pomfrey and got a pain relief potion. It made the last leg of her walk back to Slytherin infinitely easier. She immediately retired to bed, ignoring the usual lustful looks of her male house mates.
The next day Daphne found a quiet spot in the library and sat down to ostensibly do homework. Instead, she sat with a blank piece of parchment in front of her.
"What's the plan?"
'I can't do this alone; we need extra help.'
"Do you have anyone in mind?"
'Yes.'
Daphne stuttered to a halt as she entered the room she'd booked from the Three Broomsticks. Isabella Greengrass stood up and graced her eldest daughter with a beautiful smile. Daphne teared and rushed over, wrapping Isabella in a hug and cried into her chest. Isabella embraced her daughter and stroked her hair soothingly and allowed her to let the stress bleed out.
A while later the two Greengrass women were sitting across from each other sharing tea. Isabella was staring intently at her eldest who gave her mother what she hoped was a reassuring smile. "I'm fine, mother."
"Something or someone made you shed those tears, Daphne. I wish you trusted me enough to tell me why."
"I do trust you… you've kept all my secrets over the years, it must be because of your time as an Unspeakable."
Isabella paused with her cup halfway to her mouth. She placed the cup on the saucer and put it on the table between them. "I don't recall ever telling you about that."
"You haven't, at least not yet," Daphne elaborated.
It took a moment for the Knut to drop for Isabella. Her eyes went wide as she considered Daphne in a new light. "You're…"
"Yes," Daphne confirmed.
"How far did you travel back?"
"Six years, when I… we left it was the first week of January in two thousand and two," Daphne explained.
"You said we?"
"Uh, yes… your calculations didn't take into account the magic of the other person. I'm not the only one who came back…"
Isabella blinked. "The sacrifice made the journey with you?"
"Yes," Daphne confirmed.
"Who is it, if I may ask?"
"Hermione, Hermione Granger, Harry's best friend."
'Hello.'
"She says hello…"
"Harry's best friend, I see," Isabella responded with a brief smile. "If you took such a risk, the You-Know-Who situation must have deteriorated significantly," Isabella surmised.
"No, actually. Harry defeated him once and for all. He even managed to rise from the dead to do it," Daphne replied with a fond smile.
"Then, what made you come back?"
Daphne frowned and looked away. "After the war, Harry started using his celebrity to comment on government policy. The people in power didn't like that and they made him go away…" Daphne began before launching into a full explanation of what happened and why she specifically came back.
"Joseph was always ambitious; I didn't think he would stoop to murder to protect it."
"By then I wasn't surprised by anything father did. He was prepared to do anything to protect purebloods. Even Malfoy was more subtle in his ambitions."
'That's a bit of a stretch…'
"Why are you telling me this, Daphne? I'm happy being a sounding board, but I know you. You had a specific task in mind for me."
A small smile crossed Daphne's lip. "There's work that needs doing outside Hogwarts. I need your help, but you won't be able to do it alone. I need you to contact a specific person. Do you know Sirius Black?"
"I… knew him once. At least I thought I did, until he revealed himself as a Death Eater."
"He's not a Death Eater…." Daphne said, relaying the story Hermione had told her verbatim.
Isabella slumped in her chair staring sadly at her cold tea. "I never thought to question it. The Black family were so deeply ingrained in the dark arts and Slytherin, that it was just easier to assume that Sirius was secretly bad all along. If I'd known… oh, Sirius…"
'Wow, your Mum is taking this news kind of hard,' Hermione commented. Daphne nodded but didn't add her own thoughts, for now.
Isabella sat up and wiped away her tears, pouring a fresh cup of tea. "Sirius is on the run, how am I supposed to get in contact with him?"
"Dobby," Daphne called out, causing the little house elf to appear beside the table. "My mother needs to write a letter to Sirius Black; can you deliver it when she's ready?"
"Yes, Miss Greeny," Dobby replied.
"Who is that?" Isabella asked as Dobby disappeared.
"A friend, you can trust him."
"You still haven't told me exactly what you need me to do," Isabella pointed out.
Daphne took out a piece of parchment and slid it across the table to her mother. "I need these items. You'll need Sirius's help with at least two of them. The last one you can go after alone, but I think you should take someone you trust with you. The item has a nasty curse on it, and it's rigged with a compulsion charm. In the previous timeline the person who retrieved it got a nasty surprise, and it eventually cost them their life."
'I still think we should let Dumbledore retrieve it. It's a fitting punishment for what he did to Harry.'
'You've made that point several times…' Daphne replied mentally.
"Daphne, what are these objects? Why are you so singularly focused on collecting them? Are they dangerous?"
"Mother, it's not that I can't tell you, it's that I don't want to. No one should be burdened with the knowledge of what these things are. It's not the item itself that's the issue, it's the evil they've been imbued with. All I can definitively say is that, if I don't destroy them, there's no way for You-Know-Who to die. Does that satisfy you?"
"Not entirely. But I don't think I'm going to get anything more out of you. Very well, I will do as you've asked. I will send a note when I've made contact with Sirius."
"Send it through, Dobby. The owl mail may be being monitored."
"As you wish," Isabella replied. "Goodbye, Daphne, I love you," she said, kissing her daughter on the head.
"Goodbye, mother, I love you too," Daphne replied with a warm smile.
Once Isabella was gone, Hermione spoke. "You know that, as soon as your mother contacts Sirius, he's going to shoot off a letter to Harry. He's going to want to know how you know his godfather is innocent."
"I am aware."
"...You want Harry to confront you about this. That puts you in his orbit. You really are a Slytherin," Hermione commented as Daphne's plan dawned on her.
"Through and through, Granger. Through and through."